Diplomacy

Russia has two American-Americans

The diplomatic dispute between the United States and Russia in the next round. After the United States expelled two Russian citizens, then Russia, two Americans back in the homeland.

Moscow has expelled two employees of the U.S. Embassy in the country and as a response, Moscow announced. 17. June had shown the United States, two Russians, as on Friday it became known. Russia accused the two Americans, to be for the US secret service CIA. In addition, one of them had been in a fight with a police officer involved. That’s why you have to leave the country.

Moscow had already announced shortly after the expulsion of the two Russians by the Americans a response. The expulsion of the two men, the spokesman of the US state Department, John Kirby, described in turn as a response to an attack on a US diplomat by a Russian police officer in Moscow. What is the role or Position the Russians had in the United States, is not known.

According to Kirby’s information, the police officer had the American diplomats at the 6. June at the entrance to the Embassy compound attacked, although this had been reported. “The action was totally groundless and has threatened the safety of our employees,” he said. Russian information, the police have protected the Embassy in front of an unknown intruder, he rejected as “untrue”.

“Diplomatic business”

The condition of the diplomats themselves, Kirby did not want to comment. He complained, however, generally, of increasing harassment by the Russian security services against the US Embassy personnel. The goal is to disrupt the diplomatic and consular operation.

By the end of June, the US had confirmed the state Department spokeswoman, reports the newspaper “Washington Post” that U.S. diplomats in Moscow since the Russian annexation of the Crimean Peninsula before two years, a growing number of safety officials and traffic policemen and harassed are being watched. According to the sheet of the persecuted Russian security officials, US representatives and their families, appeared uninvited at receptions, and paid money for negative reporting.

Mutual Recriminations

The newspaper quoted U.S. diplomats in Moscow, the reported night-time burglaries in their homes: furniture to be moved, and lamps had been lit. In the house of the U.S. military attachés from burglar had killed the dog of the diplomats. In another case, the feces was on the carpet of the private apartment of the diplomat to leave.

Russia accused, for its part, the United States, the disability of its own diplomats, and said that it was responding to such provocations. These charges Washington rejected in turn as unfounded.

chr/cgn/gri (afp, rtr)